Year Six: The Prophecy
by Jade 'n' Dusk
Summary: Two young transfers to Hogwarts meet some incredible boys and learn things about themselves that they could never have imagined possible.
1. Default Chapter

Year Six: The Prophecy

Author's Note: We realize that the word mud bloods has a space in it in our story thus far. Unfortunately, for some reason, the computer we are currently using makes that correction, and we have yet to find a way to stop it!

Disclaimer: We do not own Harry Potter (sadly…)

"Dear Aunt Colleen,"

Jade began a long a overdue letter to aunt as she sat on the Hogwarts Express. She was alone in a compartment, half-wishing for some company, when she decided to begin the letter. And yet, now, with her quill in hand and parchment in front of her, she found no words. And really, there wasn't a lot to say.

Jade's parents, Irish muggles, had perished in a terrible car accident that summer. Her aunt had let her come and stay with her, which wasn't that big of a deal, considering that she had spent the majority of her childhood living with her aunt, while her parents attempted to sort out their rocky relationship. She was transferring to Hogwarts. Her aunt, the only other witch in the family, had gone there.

Just as Jade stuffed her quill and parchment back into her small knapsack, deciding to write to her aunt later, she heard a knock at the door.

"Yeah, come on in," she called, looking up to greet whoever was about to appear.

The door opens. A girl with blondish brown hair (with shocking lime green highlights, and the tips dyed blue) walks in. She wears a football (English soccer) jersey and khaki shorts. And she sat down across Jade her numerous necklaces jingled together, making a light clinking sound.

"It's okay if I sit here, right?" the girl asks, even though she was already situated in the seat across from Jade. She props her sandal wearing feet up next to Jade.

"Um, yeah. Whatever," Jade says, shrugging in an attempt to display indifference.

"Good! Everywhere else I went was jammed full!" She grins, bouncing a little in her seat. "My name's Dusk Hammons…you?"

Jade eyes the girl for a moment. She has tan skin and a thick English accent. Her white teeth set out brightly against her tan skin as she smiles.

"I'm Jade McGillan," Jade answers. "Um, nice to meet you." Her voice trails off slightly. Jade had always been somewhat at a loss for words when meeting new people. Dusk however, who seemed terribly talkative, made up for any lack of socialism on Jade's part.

"I'm from Hawaii," Dusk announces proudly. "My dad's English, so there's the accent…"

"And the tan skin is from your mum," Jade observes.

Dusk nods. Jade quickly realizes that Dusk is a very animated person.

After talking about Hawaii and her parents and pretty much all aspects of her life for a half hour or so, Dusk becomes quieter. Her interests stray from her own life, and instead she begins asking Jade questions about her life.

"Well," Jade begins, not sure how to explain her family situation. "My parents are…well, were…well…" She feels her face flushing slightly as she searches for the words to explain her parent's deaths to this strange girl.

"Are you okay?" asks Dusk, sensing Jade's distress at the subject.

"Yeah, yeah," Jade reassures both Dusk and herself. "It's just, you see, my parents died this past summer, so I'm living with my aunt." There. She had said it.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Dusk replies, a look of sincere empathy in her eyes.

"Thanks," says Jade, trying to act like it's no big deal. "Anyway, my parents were Irish, like me. Muggles, actually. Dad was a banker, and Mum was a dentist. Rather boring on that front, really," she chuckles a little in an attempt to lighten the mood, and Dusk joins her.

Just then, as they are laughing, an old woman pushing along the trolley opens the door to their compartment.

"Anything from the trolley, dears?" she asks, as is her custom.

Jade pulls a sickle from the depths of her pocket and purchases a chocolate frog. Dusk gets some of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, which the two split.

"Ugh!" Jade cries, chewing on a bean about half an hour later. "This is absolutely horrid!"

Jade and Dusk had made their way through the beans, and were each on their last one when the door to their compartment opened once again. A round, stout boy walks in. He has dark hair and a shy, confused way about him.

"Hi," he mumbles. "I'm Neville." Both girls notice that his voice has a nasally quality to it. "I'm supposed to tell everyone that we'll be there soon, and to change into their robes. So…you know…yeah."

"Okay," says Dusk, stifling a giggle. "Thank you."

He nods and leaves the compartment, shutting the door behind him.

"Wow…I sure hope all the guys around here aren't like him," Jade says, snickering.

"You can say that again," agrees Dusk.

They turn away from one another and quickly change into their robes.

After they finish changing, Jade asks a question that has been lingering in her mind for some time. "I still have to be sorted into a house. What house are you in?"

"I still have to be sorted also," Dusk says. "I'm transferring from an American school." She gazes out the window. "Oh my," she says. "Do you mind if I open this?"

Jade shakes her head, turning to the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever is interesting Dusk.

Dusk pries the window open and a large silvery eagle owl flies in, causing Jade to jump back.

"Don't worry," Dusk says, letting the bird perch on her arm. "This is my owl, Kala."

"Oh, okay," Jade says. "You had me confused for a second there."

Dusk grins. Just then, the door opens once again. A squealing girl with a rather squashed looking face, somewhat resembling that of a pug faced dog, enters the compartment, with a blonde boy trailing behind her.

"Oh my," says Dusk, trying to keep her cool. "No offense, but have people around here ever heard of knocking?"

The sqealing girl stops her sqealing and throws a dirty look at Dusk.

"Look what we have here, Draco," she says, sneering. "We've encountered a couple filthy mud bloods."

"Can we help you?" snarls Jade.

"Yeah, get out of here," answers the girl. "We don't want any mud bloods in our school!"

"Apparently you're not big on manners either," counters Dusk.

"Whatever," says the girl, apparently out of snide remarks for the moment.

"Just forget it, Pansy," chimes in the blonde boy.

"Leave it to you to take their side!" screams the girl, Pansy. Then she turns and stomps out of the compartment.

"Sorry 'bout her," the boy says, shrugging. "Bit off her wig sometimes, you know?"

"Sure," says Jade, even though she doesn't know what he means. "Just keep her away from me! Nobody has any business insulting me just because of who my parents are!"

"You mean your parents really are muggles?" he asks, a smirk forming on his lips.

"Yeah," Jade says, standing. "You don't have a problem with that, do you?"

The boy looks as though he is about to make a nasty comment, and Jade is fully prepared to counter it and defend both herself and the memory of her parents. But then Dusk stands up, and the boy seems to notice her for the first time.

"I'm Dusk Hammons," she introduces herself, trying to avoid the brewing conflict. She eyes the boy and is pleased with what she sees: piercing blue eyes, a tall frame, white blonde hair. "I'm transferring from Salem Academy of Witchcraft, in America. It's an all girls school. Boring as hell, actually." She giggles flirtatiously. Her owl screeches. "Oh, this is Kala, by the way."

"I'm Draco Malfoy," the boy introduces himself, flashing a bright smile at Dusk.

"Jade McGillan," Jade says. "The mud blood, apparently. I'm transferring from Dublin Witchcraft Academy."

Draco nods, but keeps his awe-stuck gaze on Dusk's smiling face.

"Cool," he says. "I'm from here, England. I'm in Slytherin House." He gestures to the Slytherin House coat of arms on his robes.

"You're so lucky to be sorted. I am not looking forward to going up and getting sorted with all the first years!" Dusk says.

"Yeah," Jade says more to Dusk than to Draco, who she still doesn't completely trust. "It's bad enough when you are a first year."

"Don't worry," Draco reassures them. "There's always a couple of transfers. What year are you guys in?"

"I'm a sixth year, and Jade a….what year are you, Jade?" Dusk answers.

"I'm sixth, too," Jade says.

"Me too," Draco says, nodding at the girls. He grins. "Must have been a good year or something."

Dusk's heart flutters at his joke. _Wow, this guy is awesome! I hope isn't after him, because I sure am!_

She turns to Jade, who is gazing out the window indifferently. _Okay, guess I'm safe there._

"Well, you guys had better get your stuff around and ready to go. We should be arriving any minute now."

Jade nods. _God, this guy really is a piece of work. First he calls me a mud blood, totally dissing my heritage, then he tells me what to do! _She looks at Dusk, who obviously is adoring Draco. _Oh well, guess Dusk likes him._

She goes back to organizing her knapsack.

"I guess I'd better go get my own stuff around, too," Draco says, heading for the door.

"Okay," says Dusk, looking somewhat deflated. "See you around?"

"Yeah, definitely."

Dusk grins as Draco leaves the compartment. She turns her smiling face to Jade.

"This is going to be the best year ever!" she gushes.

Suddenly, the door bursts open, once again.

"Oh my God, could you people knock, please!?!?" Jade says, exasperated.

"Um, sorry," says the boy standing in the door frame. He has messy black hair and striking green eyes framed by glasses. "Are you the transfers?"

"Yeah," Jade says. "Sorry for snapping like that, but you have no idea how many people have just burst in here in the last half hour!" She laughs a bit, hoping to show him that she isn't really mad.

"Oh, okay," says the boy. "People tend to think of the train as their own personal property sometimes. After six years of riding it…well, you know."

"You're a sixth year?" Dusk chimes in. "Us too!"

The boy nods. "Yeah. Anyway, I'm supposed to take you to get sorted."

"Oh. Doesn't that happen in the Great Hall?" asks Jade.

"How would you know that if you're a transfer?" asks the boy, surprised.

"When I found out I was transferring here, I picked up a copy of Hogwarts: A History."

"Well, anyway, yeah, the first years get sorted in there. But transfers go up to Dumbledore's office and get sorted."

"But…" Jade protests. "As headmaster, doesn't he kind of have to be there for the sorting ceremony. Not to mention the hat!"

He laughs. "You really did do your research. He sticks around for the sorting ceremony, makes announcements and all, and then he sneaks off to sort the transfers, if there are any. Then you can go down and join your house."

"Oh…" Dusk says, nodding. "Why not just sort us with the first years then?"

"I don't really know," the boy says, shaking his head. "I guess they just like to keep it a first year thing. Oh, by the way, I'm Harry Potter."

The girls exchange looks.

"I'm Jade McGillan."

"Dusk Hammons here."

"Nice to meet you," says Harry politely. "Well, I'm supposed to take you up to the headmaster's office once we arrive."

"Yes, we gathered that," says Dusk impatiently. "When will we get there?"

SCHREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Whoa!" exclaims Jade as the stopping of the train jolts her forward.

Dusk gets up and opens the compartment door, anxious to go get sorted and get on with her life at Hogwarts. She gathers up her things and charges out the door ahead of Harry and Jade, only to smash into Draco Malfoy.

"Oh my God, I am so sorry!" she says as both of their things clatter to the floor. She bends over and gets her bag and Kala's cage, apologizing both to Draco, and to her owl.

She stands up and sees Draco glaring somewhat maliciously into the compartment. She turns and sees that he is staring into the hard gaze of Harry Potter.

"Potter," Draco acknowledges Harry's presence.

"Malfoy," Harry says.

Dusk pokes her head in between the two. Smiling, she says, "Hammons."

Jade, getting it, chimes in, "McGillan…so, now that we all know each other…"

She and Dusk chuckle at the little joke, hoping to have relieved some of the tension between the two boys.

"Anyway, we probably should leave before the train leaves with us still on it," Dusk suggests.

Jade nods and Kala screeches in agreement from her cage. The girls head for the nearest exit and the boys follow somewhat reluctantly.

"What about our trunks?" asks Dusk once they are outside.

"Well-" both Harry and Draco begin at the same time.

Jade raises an eyebrow as the two boys glare at one another once again.

"Go ahead, Malfoy," Harry says, trying to be a gentleman.

"Yeah…" Draco says. "Well, don't worry about your trunks. They'll be taken to your dormitories once you've been sorted.

"What about Kala?" asks Dusk, giving a concerned look to her owl.

"Um…if you put her with those trunks over there," Harry says gesturing to a large and growing pile of trunks, "they should put her with your other things. Is your name on her cage anywhere?"

Dusk scans the cage, locating a small tag with her own name and Kala's name. "Yeah, it's set." She walks over to the pile of trunks and set's Kala's cage down. "Bye Kala," she mutters before walking away.

"Right well, come on," Draco says once they've all regrouped. "We have to get in a coach."

The four of them find an empty coach and board it.

"I wonder what pulls them?" asks Dusk, as the coach moves along.

"They're rather hideous, aren't they?" asks Jade, making a face.

"You can see them?" Harry says, looking at her intently.

"Of course I can see them," says Jade. "I'm not blind, you know!"

"Well, I can't see them!" complains Dusk, peering out the window at the beasts, which are invisible to her gaze. "Can you?" She turns to Draco.

"Nope," he says, shaking his head.

"That's because you've never seen anyone die," Harry says quietly.

They all look at him, and then at Jade.

"You've seen someone die?" Dusk asks.

"Yeah…um…my aunt was married once. The three of us went hiking once and he fell on a steep part…it's okay, though. We didn't really get along very well."

Dusk nods. "Oh," she says, taking this in.

They sat throughout the rest of the carriage ride in silence. Within a few moments, the carriage halts.

They were at Hogwarts.


	2. Chapter Two

Year Six: The Prophecy

Chapter Two:

Draco and Harry step out of the carriage. Dusk follows and would have hopped the two or so feet to the ground, but Draco extended his hand. Somewhat hesitantly, she accepts it, and he helps her down.

Harry extends his own hand for Jade, but she jumps down before realizing that he was offering to help her. Dusk turns to Jade and flashes her huge smile.

"We are so lucky!" she whispers.

Jade simply smiles. She was a little less trusting than it appeared that Dusk was. She turns to Harry and asks, "Where do we go from here?"

"To Dumbledore's office to get you two sorted," Harry replies with a smile.

"What are the houses?" asks Dusk, curious to learn everything that she can about Hogwarts.

"There are four houses," answers Draco. "Slytherin, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff."

"Ah," says Dusk. Then, somewhat embarrassedly, "What's the difference?" Suddenly she wishes she had picked up her own copy of Hogwarts: A History.

"Gryffindor has the symbol of a lion," Harry says. "Supposedly, that house hosts the bravest of all."

"Yes, well, you would know, wouldn't you, Potter?" snaps Draco.

Dusk and Jade throw him some questioning looks, but Harry ignores the comment and continues on.

"Slytherin holds the most cunning and sly and has the symbol of a snake. The Hufflepuff house hosts the shyest of people, and their symbol is a badger, and Ravenclaw house holds the smartest and most clever of all, and has the symbol of a raven."

The girls nod, taking this in.

Harry chuckles slightly.

"What is it?" asks Jade, suddenly afraid he is laughing at their ignorance of Hogwarts ways.

"Nothing…" he answers. "I was just thinking…well, the smartest students are supposed to be in Ravenclaw, which means my friend Hermionie Granger is most definitely in the wrong house!"

Jade smiles. "She's smart, is she?"

Harry nods. "God, you have no idea…"

The procession of students moves on until everyone has entered the building. Most of the students move along into a large room, no doubt the Great Hall, while Harry, Draco, Dusk, and Jade head up the stairs. They walk along a while, greeted by several talkative paintings as they continue up the stairs.

"Wow," says Jade, looking around wide-eyed. "This place is amazing…"

"Yeah," agrees Dusk. "It sure beats Salem by a mile!"

The four young students continue on their way when suddenly the stair case they are making their way up lurches off to one side. Dusk cries out. Jade reaches quickly for the railing.

Both Harry and Draco laugh whole-heartedly.

"That's not funny," Jade protests, though she herself is laughing as well.

Dusk, however, is not laughing. She glares at them for a moment, and then asks, "Is there anyway around them?"

The boys shake their heads. "Nope," says Draco. "If you want to get upstairs, this is the only way."

The color drains slightly from Dusk's face as she forces her legs to carry her up the stairs, which, fortunately, stop moving.

"They don't change every time," Draco reassures her once she's made her way to the landing. "Only sometimes…"

"Well, I'm not used to stairs that change at all," she replies rather shakily. "And I'm sorry, but heights scare me!"

"It's okay," Jade comforts her. "We'll know what's happening next time, and I'm sure you won't be as scared."

Dusk nods without really believing Jade's words.

"It's okay," Harry tells them, heading up the next flight of stairs. "There's only a little ways left."

Reluctantly, the girls follow him, and Draco brings up the rear.

"Anyway," Jade says, resuming the conversation. "This place is absolutely nothing like Dublin! Hogwarts is so much bigger!"

"Yeah, Salem was pretty small, too," Dusk agrees, hurrying up the stairs.

"Did you have houses in Salem?" asks Draco from behind.

"Yeah," Dusk says. "We were sorted out sort of like your houses here. The Rosemanda house was like Hufflepuff, and Angelus is like Slytherin. The Harboress house was like a combination of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor."

"What house were you in?" asks Jade as they near the stairs to Professor Dumbledore's office.

"I was sorted into Harboress," replies Dusk. "They went round and round on where to put me. I almost ended up in Angelus."

"Well," says Harry, stopping in front of a statue. "This is it."

Dusk and Jade glance at one another, trying to pretend that they understand what he is talking about.

Finally, Jade asks, "This is what?"

"Oh," says Harry, chuckling lightly. "Sorry. This is the entrance to Dumbledore's office. I have to say the password, which will be changed as soon as we leave, just so you know."

The girls nod, having no intention of remembering the password and breaking into the headmaster's office. Their thoughts are on their sorting. Jade wrings her hands nervously, while Dusk teeters back and forth on her feet.

"Beeswax," Harry says clearly.

"What?" asks Dusk, giving him a confused look.

"That was the password," explains Draco.

The statue in front of them slowly begins turning. It revolves upwards, revealing a moving staircase. The two boys got on, and the girls followed suit. When they reached the top, they were greeted by a large, closed door. Harry knocks on it.

"Come in, come in," comes an old, gentle voice.

Harry opens the door for the girls and then allows Draco to let himself in. They look around the large, beautiful office. Magic seems to stir in every corner of the room, and Jade and Dusk attempt to take it all in.

"Welcome, Miss McGillan, and Miss Hammons," says the old man who had let them in. He peers at them over the tops of half moon glasses and smiles beneath his thick, long white beard. "I am Albus Dumbledore, as I'm sure you had concluded." His blue eyes seemed to sparkle as he spoke. "I trust you would like to join your classmates as soon as possible, and I would like to return to the feast, so shall we begin with your sorting?"

Jade and Dusk look at one another anxiously.

"Who would like to go first? No particular order is necessary in this case," Dumbledore explains.

Reluctantly, and boldly, Jade steps forward. "I suppose I shall…" she says.

Dumbledore gestures for her to sit down in a small four legged stool in front of him, and she does so. Dumbledore places a heavy, old and musty hat on top of her head.

Inside Jade's mind, she can hear the musings of the old hat as it shuffles through her thoughts, discerning her qualities. _Ah…interesting…righteous, yes…and yet, not quite sure of yourself…smart, courageous and brave…only one place to put you!_

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat cries out, startling everyone but Professor Dumbledore.

He removes the hat from Jade's head of golden red waves, and she gets off the stool.

"That's my house," Harry whispers as she joins him in front of the stool.

Jade smiles contentedly. Academics had always been a priority in her life and she had expected to be placed in the no doubt nerdy Ravenclaw House, with all the other brains, so this was somewhat of a surprise. For a moment, she doubted her intelligence, but the hat had even said that she was smart.

Dusk steps forward and takes her seat on the stool. Dumbledore places the hat on her head, as he had Jade's, and Dusk's mind is suddenly filled with the opinions and observations of the Sorting Hat. _Cunning, yes, and brave as well…sly…hmmm…where to put you? Hmmm…I suppose…_

"GRYFFINDOR!" the house cries out once again.

Dusk gets off the stool quickly, not wishing to have her character analyzed by the hat any longer than necessary. She breaths a sigh of relief as she walks over to Jade and the boys. She can't help but notice that Draco looks somewhat deflated at the hat's decision. Jade, however, is positively beaming with happiness that the only friend she knows is in the same house as she is. Harry also looks pleased.

Dumbledore's speaks once again. "Welcome, young ladies, to Hogwarts, and congratulations on being new additions to a fine house. I, personally, am off to the feast. However, as you took your time getting here-" he winks at Dusk "-your fellow students will most likely be dispersing soon. Therefore, if you wish, you may go to the kitchens and get some food. Harry knows the password." He nods in Harry's direction.

"Thank you, Professor," the girls say simultaneously. Then they leave the room, followed closely by Harry and Draco.


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three:

"So you guys hungry?" asks Harry after they had reached the hallway once again.

"Yes, I'm starving!" says Dusk energetically.

"Yeah, I'll have something," Jade replies, somewhat less enthusiastically.

"Right well, I guess it's off to the kitchens then," says Harry, turning and leading them down the hall.

"You just always have to take charge, don't you Potter?" snaps Draco, hurrying along to get ahead of his nemesis.

Jade and Dusk exchange glances, rolling their eyes.

They walk along a bit that way, each competing to lead the group. Finally, Draco tires of this, and falls back level with the two girls. Jade, seeing how obviously interested Dusk is, quickens her pace and walks along next to Harry.

"So what's the deal with that awful girl from the train?" asks Dusk, curiously. She had sort of wanted to ask what the deal was between the girl and him, but that seemed too forward.

"Nothing really," Draco says, shrugging. "She's in my house, so we hang around together in classes and stuff. She's not really so bad. She just has very strong opinions on your friend there and her sort." He nods ahead to Jade.

"There's nothing wrong with Jade," Dusk says, defending her new found friend.

"Yes, well, I'm afraid I've been taught differently," Draco says coldly.

"Well, did you ever think that you could have been taught wrong?" Dusk asks him, hopefully.

Draco doesn't answer.

Ahead of them, Harry and Jade walk along somewhat awkwardly, neither of them really sure what to say.

Finally, Harry breaks the ice. "So, how was Dublin school?" he asks.

"Well, I got a good start there and everything, but socially, I didn't do so well. There were a lot of wizarding families who didn't appreciate or respect my, um…parentage." She sighs, remembering how she had often been excluded from activities and cliques because she had muggle parents.

"Yeah, I'm afraid you're likely to encounter a few of that sort around here too," Harry answers, nodding his head in Draco Malfoy's direction.

"I take it you and he don't get along well?" Jade asks, even though it was pretty obvious.

"Yeah, we've been feuding since first year. There's a lot in it though, and it's kind of hard to explain."

"Oh. That's okay."

By that time they had gone down several flights of stairs, fortunately without incident. Harry and Jade turned and waited for Draco and Dusk, who caught up eventually. They both looked a little tense.

"Come on you two, I'm hungry!" Harry urges them.

Dusk glares at him. "Did you forget that I am afraid of the stair cases?"

Harry shrugs sheepishly. "Yeah, sort of. Sorry."

"God, Potter," chimes in Draco, a smirk on his face. "Could you maybe be more considerate?"

The two cast dirty looks at one another.

"Okay, if you are all going to fight, just give me the password and I'll find the kitchens on my own," says Jade, annoyed at the whole lot of them.

They all look at her. "You're right," Dusk says. "Come on, let's go eat."

The group continues down the hallway until they reach a large painting of a bowl of fruit.

"Is this it?" asks Dusk, gazing at the painting intently.

"Yep," answers Harry, nodding. As though on queue, his stomach growls.

"Guess we ought to go in then," Jade urges.

"Apple pie," Harry says.

They all watch as the pear in the painting twists and contorts into a door knob. Harry reaches out and turns it, opening the door. He let's the girls in, and then goes in himself, nearly locking Draco out.

Jade and Dusk stare at the kitchens. They were large and seemingly extensive, and filled with bustling house elves.

"Wow," Jade exclaims, taking in all the commotion and activity that seemed to be going on.

"So they make all the food?" asks Dusk, nodding to the house elves.

"Yes," answers Draco, eyeing the food hungrily.

Jade snorts and makes a face. They all turn to her.

"Is there a problem?" asks Harry.

"Well…yes…I don't want a diner prepared by slaves!"

Draco smacks his forehead. "They're house elves, now can we please just eat already!"

"You're welcome to eat whenever you want to, Malfoy!" says Harry, taking up the opportunity to argue with Draco. "Preferably not with me!"

Draco sneers and shakes his head.

Harry turns back to Jade. He smiles.

"What?" she asks, hoping that he isn't laughing at her.

"Nothing. It's just…you have got to meet my friend, Hermionie!"

Jade nods. "Hopefully I will sometime. It's just that, we, my family that is, didn't have house elves or anything. Neither does my aunt, who I live with. And…well, I don't know. Some of this stuff just seems totally foreign to me!"

Harry nods. "It's really okay. Trust me, they only get mad at you if you try to relieve them of their servitude. Ask Hermionie, when you meet her. The only exception to the rule is Dobby, a house elf who used to belong to the Malfoy family."

Draco, overhearing this, sneers once again. "Yes, and he was a perfectly good house elf until you tricked my father into freeing him!"

Harry shakes his head, but chooses not to reply. Instead, he looks at Jade and Dusk. "You guys ready to eat or what?"

They nod and follow the two boys to a small square table with four chairs around it. They all sit down.

"So…what's on the menu?" asks Draco, addressing a small house-elf with particularly large ears who had approached them.

"Appetizers, sirs and misses?" it asks them.

"Yes, please," answers Dusk.

The elf scurries away and returns quickly with a giant bowl of salad. Another elf followed with a large bowl of fruit. The two elves sit the bowls down on the table, along with some plates and bowls for the four students, and hurry off in the direction they came from.

"Thanks a bunch!" Jade calls awkwardly after them. She was quite uncomfortable with being served, as she was quite used to taking care of herself. Her aunt, who worked a lot of overtime at the Ministry of Magic, had not been around a lot, which had given Jade the gift of independence.

As the company of four served themselves some salad and ate, they conversed about Hogwarts and the year to come. Most of the talking was done by the two girls, both anxious to break out of their shells at a new school, while the two boys mostly listened, occasionally casting angry glances at one another.

"I am so glad I met some people!" Dusk exclaims excitedly. "I was just terrified when I found out I was going to have to transfer, scared I would be all alone, you know? But then I met Jade and you two, and I really don't feel as nervous anymore!"

"Except on moving stair cases," Jade points out matter-of-factly.

They all laugh.

"Yeah, you know, I felt the same way," Jade informs them. "I was afraid I would just be the new girl forever and end up a loner or something. I was afraid it would be just like Dublin." She shoots a look at Draco. "Fortunately, however, it appears some people don't base everything on one's parentage."

"Was it really that bad there?" asks Dusk, curiously.

"Yeah. Actually, a lot of the girls there sort of wished they could be 'normal.' They practically wanted to be muggles."

"Wow," says Dusk, hardly believing such a thing.

"Yeah," Jade continues. "They acted like we were all defective or something. And the fact that everything had to do with your class only added to it. I was pretty glad to be leaving. And my aunt went here, so I had grown up listening to her go on and on, telling all these stories about how wonderful Hogwarts and how much she had loved it."

"A few of the girls in Salem were like that, but it was a fairly small school with only a hundred or so students. Because of that, I had some muggle friends, people I had met wandering in town and such. We would go out and hang out, and even though they didn't know what I really was, I got on better with them than with any of the girls at school. I had a lot of friends in Hawaii as well." A smile forms on her lips. "I even played muggle soccer, or football, I think you call it. Do any of you play any sports?"

Draco and Harry give one another knowing looks. "Quidditch," they say, simultaneously. Surprisingly, a third voice had also spoke with them.

They look at Jade. "You play quid ditch?" asks Harry.

Jade grins for the first time since they had left the train. "I was keeper for a couple of years, and seeker my third year. Only then we lost a beater, and there was a younger girl wanting to be seeker, so I switched over to beater. I've been playing that ever since. I was sort of like my team's wild card player. I knew a lot because my aunt works in the Department of Magical Sports, and she was Quidditch captain and all, so she taught me from the time I was a little kid."

"That's awesome!" says Harry, a look of extreme admiration on his face. "Hey, Gryffindor has tryouts coming up, you should definitely try!"

"Are there any openings?" she asks, hopefully.

"Yeah," says Harry, now looking slightly downcast. "A couple of beaters, my friend's twin brothers, dropped out last year, so there's openings there."

Jade nods, sensing that the two beaters did not leave on necessarily good terms with the school. "I'll be sure to check it out," she says.

"Too bad wizarding schools don't have soccer," says Dusk, sighing.

They all give her a questioning look.

"Sorry," she says, chuckling. "I know it's a muggle sport and all, but I really like it."

"Yes, I tried football, er, soccer once," Jade says. "However, I greatly lack coordination when I'm not on a broom, so it was really quite hopeless. My aunt gave me my broom when I was a first year because that was the first year I played on a real team." She grins once again.

"You played first year?" asks Harry, surprised.

"Yeah, but they only let me because they knew I had been taught by my aunt, and because I tried out about fifteen times, determined to make the team." She laughs at the image of her first year self that forms in her head.

"You must have been pretty good," says Draco, his smirk reforming. "I'll look forward to beating you in the Slytherin Gryffindor match."

"Who says I'm even trying out?" counters Jade, even though she has every intention of doing so.

"You should," says Harry. "We need beaters, like I said."

"Yes, but even more than that, they need someone to help out Weasley, otherwise known as Slytherin's king!" says Draco, confidently.

"Funny, because the king beat your asses last year!" Harry retorts.

The girls heads turn from one boy to the next as their continuous arguing persists.

"Well, I'm going back to Slytherin," says Draco, rising.

"Yeah, I think everyone is done," says Dusk, rising as well. "You two ready to go?"

Jade and Harry nod and get up. Jade begins gathering plates, as though to clear the table, and they all give her a questioning look. A small house elf wanders over and takes the plates away from her.

"Right well, I guess I'll let them handle that," says Jade, once again somewhat uncomfortable.

They leave the kitchens and walk up several flights of stairs. Finally, they reach Draco's dormitory, and he says his goodbyes, not forgetting to mention to Dusk that he will "see her around," to which she replies, "definitely."

Harry leads them to a portrait of a rather large woman, whom Harry refers to as "the fat lady."

"This is the door to our dormitory. Only Gryffindors know it, and only Gryffindors know the password, and we would all like to keep it that way, okay?" He looks mostly to Dusk as he says this.

"Your secret's safe with me," says Dusk, shrugging.

"Yes, well, just keep in mind that it's your secret as well," Harry reminds her. Then he turns to the portrait to recite the password. "Moonbeams," he says. Then he turns to the girls once again. "That's the password for now. It changes periodically, but word always travels fast through houses when the password changes."

The girls nod, showing that they understand. Harry leads the way through the open portrait and down a few stairs to another door, which he opens and enters.

"This is the common room," he explains, gesturing to the room, which is decorated in deep red and gold. Then, to the entire room this time, he announces, "We've got two new Gryffindor sixth years!"

Several students merely look up, while others cheer appreciatively, which, Jade and Dusk imagine, is probably out of sheer joy at having not allowed Slytherin to gain any more students. Several students wander up and introduce themselves to Jade and Dusk, who, rather awkwardly, introduce themselves as well. Finally, once the commotion has died down, two Gryffindors, a ginger haired boy and a girl with rather frizzy, bushy brown hair wander over.

"Hey, Harry!" they both say, hurrying over to greet their friend.

"I hated you not being at dinner," admit's the girl. "It completely broke with tradition."

Jade feels her cheeks flush slightly with guilt at having kept another student away from their traditional dinner and friends.

The girl turns to Dusk and Jade. "Oh, sorry!" she exclaims. "My name's Hermionie Granger, and this is Ron Weasley. We're friends of Harry's."

"I'm Jade McGillan," Jade says. "I think Harry may have mentioned you. Something about books and house elves."

Harry laughs. He looks at Hermionie. "You two have to hang out sometime!" he says. "You have a lot in common."

Hermionie nods, and Jade can't tell whether she thinks that having a new girl with a lot in common with her is a good thing or not.

"I'm Dusk Hammons," Dusk interjects. "Glad to meet you."

"Harry," says Ron, after acknowledging the girls with a brief nod. "Mum got us all up early this morning. She was bustling about like a mad woman, yelling that she didn't think we'd have enough jumpers for school! She must have ten sets of knitting needles going at once! And to think it's Ginny and me this year!"

Harry shakes his head sympathetically, even though he really doesn't look like he feels that sorry.

"Anyway," Ron continues. "I think I'm going to go ahead up to bed. I mean, first day classes tomorrow and all. It'll be even worse than normal if I'm sleeping through it all! Imagine Snape if I fell asleep in class!"

Harry and Hermionie laugh at this, and Jade and Dusk simply smile, feeling somewhat out of the loop.

"I think I'll go to bed too," Harry says, turning to follow Ron. "Night you guys."

The two boys disappear up a second staircase off to one side of the room. Hermionie turns to Jade and Dusk.

"I suppose we ought to go to bed as well," she says. "Though I wouldn't pay too much attention to those two. I always found first day classes somewhat enjoyable."

The girls follow Hermionie up a staircase opposite the ones that the boys had taken, and into the girls' dormitory. They walk to a row of three beds on the left side of the room. Hermionie takes the one closest to the door, leaving the other two empty beds for Jade and Dusk. Dusk hurries to the one farthest from the door, leaving Jade to the middle bed, which she sits down on.

They prepare for bed and climb underneath their covers, even though they aren't in the least bit sleepy. As soon as they can hear the quiet breathing of their sleeping roommates, both Jade and Dusk get out of bed and hurry over to the windowsill, where they sit next to one another.

"So?" says Jade, pulling her knees up to her chest. "What do you think?"

"Of what in particular?" asks Dusk.

"Just the school and everything," Jade clarifies.

"I think that Draco guy was pretty cool," she admits.

Jade makes a face. "You think so?" She still hadn't gotten over his arrogant comments on the train.

"Yeah," Dusk answers softly. "I think maybe I could like him…"

Jade sighed. This wasn't anything she hadn't guessed already. One thing that she had quickly learned about Dusk was that she wasn't very good at hiding her feelings.

"Well," she says. "I just think we're lucky…we seem to have come to a wonderful school, and I am actually really looking forward to classes tomorrow."

"You're sort of the academic type, aren't you?" asks Dusk, remembering that Jade had bought a copy of Hogwarts: A History.

"Yes, I suppose so," Jade answers, shrugging. "I enjoy learning is all."

"Well, I'm just glad I met you, so at least I won't be all alone," Dusk replies.

The girls continued talking for some time, and finally, having gotten most of their worries out of their system, they both retired to bed and braced for their first day of school at Hogwarts.


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four:

Dusk slept fitfully throughout the night. Several times she awoke and looked at the screen on the small clock that sat on top of her nightstand. Finally, when the clock read four thirty, and she could not force herself to lay awake any longer, she got out of bed.

She quickly cleaned up for the day, pulling her hair back into a loose, messy bun. She slipped into a black, pleated skirt and a white button up shirt. Then she headed downstairs into the common room. Seeing that no one was awake, she took a seat on the couch. Watching the flames flicker, she could feel herself growing drowsy once again. She rolled over onto her side on the couch.

About an hour and a half later, she awoke to Jade's voice.

"Dusk! C'mon, we're going to miss breakfast!"

Dusk groans a little as she wakes up and sit's up on the couch. She stares at Jade through puffy eyes.

"What'd you do, get up and then go back to sleep?" Jade asks teasingly.

"Yeah, something like that," Dusk admits groggily.

"Well, I want to get some breakfast before class starts, so you're welcome to come along if you want."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming," Dusk says, getting up rather reluctantly. She had been quite comfortable on the couch, and it was the only sleep she had gotten all night.

Quite the opposite of Dusk, Jade seemed incredibly rested and alert. She was bouncing around the room like a mad woman, actually.

"What's up with you?" asks Dusk, somewhat concerned.

"I just can't wait for classes to start!" Jade exclaims. "I just know things are going to be awesome here! Way better than Dublin, at least!"

Dusk nods, still not fully awake. She follows Jade out of the common room and into the corridor. They continue on down the stairs until they reach the Great Hall on the first floor. When the enter the room, it is bustling with student activity. Old friends, reunited after the long summer break were sitting together, laughing and talking, and sharing stories about their vacations.

Dusk scanned the Great Hall for Draco Malfoy, and spotted him, sitting alone at the Slytherin table.

"Are you coming?" says Jade, gazing longingly at the Gryffindor table.

"Um…you go ahead," Dusk answers.

Jade nods and hurries off, taking a seat between Hermionie and Harry.

Dusk heads for the Slytherin table, hoping to grab the empty seat by Draco. On her way, two girls get in her way.

"Excuse me," she says, trying to edge her way around them.

They move so that they remain in her path.

"What?" she asks, realizing that they are doing this on purpose.

"Where are you going?" asks one of them. "That's the Slytherin table!"

"Yes, I know," snaps Dusk, now annoyed.

"Um…" the other girl begins. She glances nervously at the first girl to speak. "I'm Lavender Brown, and this is Parvati Patil. You must be new or you would know about the house rivalries."

"Right," says the girl named Parvati. "I mean, it's totally forgivable. You're just new. Only…you can't sit with Slytherin. Gryffindors hate Slytherin, and they hate us!"

"Well, I am friends with Draco Malfoy," Dusk replies cooly. "And I intend to eat breakfast with him."

Lavender looks at Parvati, who said, "Let's just ignore this one, Lav. C'mon."

The two take off for the Gryffindor table, where they take their seats with some other giggling girls. Dusk holds her head high and walks over to Draco, where she seizes the empty seat next to him. She looks up at the teachers and sees Dumbledore smile at her.

"Good morning, Draco," she says.

Draco looks up as though just now noticing that someone else was sitting with him. "Oh, hey," he answers, a somewhat surprised look on his face. "Um…sleep well?"

"Not really," she replies honestly.

And then they talked.

"Hey Jade," Harry greets Jade as she sits down next to him. "Where's Dusk?" He peers behind her, as though Dusk is hiding there.

"Oh, she's over with that Draco Malfoy boy," Jade replies, shrugging. She grabs a piece of French toast and pours some syrup over it.

"She's what?" asks Harry. Everyone around them goes silent and stares, waiting for Jade's reply.

"Um…" says Jade, somewhat confused by this reaction. She nods in the direction of the Slytherin table. "She's over there…"

"She's where?" asks the red haired girl, as though she didn't understand.

"Over there," repeats Jade. "And you are…?"

"Somewhat shocked at your friend!" the girl says. Then, shaking her head, "Well, Ginny."

Jade nods. "Nice to meet you, I guess…What's with this whole house rivalries thing, anyway? It wasn't like this in Dublin…"

"Well, you're not in Dublin, are you?" says Ginny.

"She has a point," Hermionie agrees. "She's just not very tactful in making it."

"Well, shouldn't the school be at least a little unified?" asks Jade, ignoring them.

"Yeah, probably," says Hermionie shrugging. "But it isn't."

Jade nods and continues eating her breakfast. Halfway through the meal, her breakfast is disrupted by a high pitched squeal coming from the Slytherin table. Jade turns and sees the same girl from the train the previous day, glaring at Dusk, who is doing her best to ignore the girl.

"Get out of my seat!" screams the girl.

Dusk replies nonchalantly, "I don't think so."

"GET OUT OF MY SEAT!!!" repeats the girl, louder this time.

"I don't see your name on it!" Dusk argues, standing up.

The girl, Pansy Parkinson, makes a face and opens her mouth, as though she is going to make further arguments. Instead, she pulls out her wand.

"Expelli-" she begins to shout the disarming spell, but is interrupted by a third voice.

"Miss Parkinson! What do you think you are doing? Or don't you think?"

Everyone's eyes are drawn to the cold voice that had yelled out. It was a tall man with greasy black hair and all black robes.

"That's Professor Snape," Harry explains in a whisper to Jade. "The meanest man imaginable…well, next to Draco's dad." He chuckles a little, as though remembering a distant memory.

Jade looks back to the confrontation at the Slytherin table.

"This girl," sputters Pansy. "She's…she's…she's in my seat!!!"

"Perhaps it would be best," says Professor Snape, now looking at Dusk. "If you went to your own table now."

Dusk gets up angrily and storms out of the Great Hall. Not knowing exactly where she is going, she heads out of the building and onto the grounds. She walks hurriedly across the bridge and down the stone stairs to the lake. For a moment she sits on the small beach, thinking angrily of the episode in the Great Hall.

She stands up and takes off her button-up shirt, exposing the spaghetti strapped shirt underneath. Then she takes off her shoes and socks. She sits by the water once again and puts her feet in the cool water. She leans her head back onto the ground, and before she knows it, falls asleep right there.

Later Dusk awakes a few hours later. She glances at her watch and, seeing the time, panics. She hurriedly pulls on her shoes and button-up. Not even wanting to think about what she must look like, she dashes for the building. She reaches the Great Hall and, realizing that she has sand throughout her hair and on her clothes, decides to make a quick stop in Gryffindor tower to freshen up before going to classes. She goes up the stairs, too worried about her missing classes to be afraid of the stairs. Finally, as she reaches the next to the last floor before the tower, she resolves to tell her teachers that she was feeling ill, and make up the work she missed that morning.

However, before she can make it to the dormitory, she is stopped by the sound of two girls talking. About her. She hides in the corner of the landing and listens as the girls make their way down the stairs.

"That Hammons girl has no right to come in here and start trying to change things!" one girl says. Dusk fights her urge to confront the girl. "I mean, sitting with a Slytherin! And what about that Irish girl? What's her name?"

"Jade," answers a second voice.

"Right, well, who does she think she is? I mean, she just shows up and all of a sudden she's Harry Potter's new best friend. You should have heard him earlier, talking about her. How nice she was and everything! Merlin knows how the Irish are…"

Dusk suddenly recognizes the voice as Lavender Brown's. That did it. She had had enough. Forgetting her appearance, she trudges down the stairs once again, and into the Great Hall. Ignoring the curious stares of several students, she locates Jade and takes a seat on the bench next to her.

"Dusk!" exclaims Jade, looking Dusk up and down. "Where were you? And-why do you have sand all over you?"

"I sort of took a nap out by the lake," Dusk admits.

"All through morning classes?" asks Jade in a somewhat scolding voice. "You'll have to make them up."

"I know!" snaps Dusk, a bit more harshly than she had intended.

Jade rolls her eyes and takes a bite out of her sandwich. "It wasn't about that awful Slytherin, was it?" asks Jade, suspiciously.

"It was about a few things," says Dusk, moodily.

"God, I sure hope this is just because of your lack of sleep," Jade says, in reference to Dusk's foul mood.

"Well, people are just so…rude!" continues Dusk. "Like that Lavender girl from this morning…" she adds, as Lavender and Parvati sit down a few benches down.

"Ignore them," advises Jade, shrugging. "They just know how to get under your skin, that's all."

"Well, you want to hear what they had to say about you?" asks Dusk, slyly.

"Not particularly," answers Jade. "But I have a feeling you're going to tell me anyway."

Dusk nods. "Of course I am! That Lavender girl said you have no right talking to Harry and something like, 'Merlin knows how the Irish are.'"

Jade stared, sort of shocked for a moment, and then regained her composure. "Well, she had no right to say anything about me," she says cooly. "She doesn't even know me."

Dusk grabs one of the small sandwiches on the table and takes a bite out of it. She and Jade eat in silence for a while, until they are interrupted by an old professor with a lined face.

"My name is Professor McGonagall," the woman informs them. "I am your head of house. And you, I trust, are Miss Hammons?"

Dusk nods. "Yes, ma'am." Then, remembering that she had missed classes all that morning, "I'm so sorry about missing classes! You see, I wasn't feeling well, and…"

Her voice trails off as Professor McGonagall shakes her head.

"You need to come with me, dear," she says, placing a hand on Dusk's shoulder. Jade gives Dusk a questioning look, and she shakes her head, letting her worried friend know that she has no idea what is going on.

"The headmaster needs to see you," says the professor, as though that explains everything.

Dusk rises and follows Professor McGonagall out of the Great Hall and up the stairs.


End file.
